LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — Local businesses are getting ready for thousands of visitors as the NFL Draft is just ten days away from kicking off in the valley.
Brittany Smith is a bartender at the stage door on the strip and she says with the NFL Draft just across the street from the bar she is expecting to make three times as much.
She says especially as we recover from this pandemic, she is looking forward to paying off her bills, keeping the roof over her head, and hopefully meeting some football players.
“It is huge, and I’m really happy to have it in Vegas,” Smith said.
Smith has been working here at the Stage Door since the beginning of this year. With the draft just walking distance from her bar, she is expecting some very profitable nights. This will help her pay her bills and put food on the table. The obligations that have been difficult during this pandemic and the rise in living costs.
“I bet we will have three to five times the number of customers flow through here, and that may even mean a vacation paid for in May by the NFL,” Smith said.
Many managers like Randy Markin says this is a major win for businesses.
“We expect to set records every day,” said Markin.
Markin is the manager of Stage Door, he says this event could not have arrived at a better time. His bar was closed for nearly seven months during the peak of COVID-19, but with it being just walking distance from the fan experience, he says it could be their best week yet since they opened in 1976.
“Figure what we make on new years, and times it by five,” Markin said.
He says he is planning to keep his prices low. He is selling a beer for a dollar and a shot of patron for $5. He says it’s the best place for NFL fans.
Steve Hill, the President and CEO of LVCVA says our city has recovered faster than any other in the nation.
“It is a big impact,” said Hill.
Hill says the draft is just a celebration of the Las Vegas comeback, and an opportunity for many like Randy Markin.
“This is something the whole town is rallying around, and we are all extremely excited,” Markin said.
